


Mosaic

by Android_And_Ale



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Lives, Angst, Big Belly Burger, Cisco is shook by the revelation, Dopplegangers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Gentle Affection, Harry has a surprising number of people caring for him during his decline, Harry's dementia, M/M, One of a Kind Wells, STAR Labs security is infamously awful, Show level science, Soft Harry, Wells Family Feels, art therapy, council of wells, everybody gets the hugs they need
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-23
Updated: 2018-05-23
Packaged: 2019-05-10 10:30:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14735288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Android_And_Ale/pseuds/Android_And_Ale
Summary: Cisco discovers he's not the only one who has assembled an alternate Council of Wells - and as one of only two people Harry still recognizes, they need Cisco's help.





	Mosaic

**Author's Note:**

> I love Jocile together and would never want to break them up, but between H.R.’s flirting and Harry’s season 4 chemistry with her I can’t resist the idea that somewhere in the multiverse a version of Harrison Wells is happily married to a doppelganger of D.A. Cecile Horton.
> 
> This takes place in late season 4, after Harry admitted dark matter was stripping his intelligence but before the finale (which hasn't aired yet as of writing).

Jesse handed Cisco a trashcan. He wobbled a little on his feet, clutching it tight while willing himself not to go full John Diggle after being unexpectedly sped into what looked like an abandoned warehouse. 

“Cisco Ramon,” Jesse spread an arm wide, taking in the half dozen people assembled in the room. “I present the new, improved Council of Wells!” 

Cisco’s stared at the half dozen dimpled strangers, ranging in age from early 30’s to a 12 year old girl. “Jesse. You know this isn’t what I meant.” 

“What?” She elbowed his ribs. He wobbled a little and tightened his grip on the trash can. “You wanted more poems about bread or another half functioning cybernetic liver in a jar?”

Cisco stuffed his hands in his pockets. “The liver was really impressive.” Wells 2.0’s knee had brushed up against his every time he leaned in to demonstrate a specific mod. He’d smelled like burnt oil and rust and sweat. 

“Wait. Jesse, your Papa and my Papi aren’t, y’know?...” The 12 year old girl looked like a shorter clone of Cisco. She glanced nervously at him through her lashes then stared hard at her shoes. 

“Not on this Earth, Xiomara,” Jesse said softly,  “But this is one of the Earth’s where your Papi is still alive.” 

A tall, lanky man in his mid 20’s wrapped an arm around Xiomara’s shoulders. His skin was a little darker than hers, though unlike her long, straight hair he had a thick head of tight kinky curls cut into a drop fade that eased into a neatly trimmed beard. He rested his chin on her head. “You’re not the only One of a Kind Wells.” 

He kissed the top of Xiomara’s head before holding a hand out to Cisco.“Curtis Wells. Earth 32.” He tapped the name badge on his chest. It read,  _ D.A. Cecile Horton. _ “My parents met in grad school. Dad was the prosecution’s scientific advisor at one of her law school’s mock trials. They’ve been arguing ever since.” His broad, toothy smile was pure sunshine. 

Curtis steered Cisco towards the group. “That’s Virginia Wells, Earth 8. Her parents founded ‘Off Brand Coffee’ in the 1990’s. They have over 25,000 stores worldwide.” 

“Play on words. Brand. It’s mom’s name.” said Virginia. Six feet tall without her shiny blue combat boots, the tattooed blonde towered over her multiversal half siblings. She had her mother’s warm smile and her father’s nervous energy. She was using a sharpie to draw a heart with a ribbon through it on the untattoed part of her forearm. Inside the ribbon she wrote  _ Tracy Brand Wells. _

“Father Gonryn Lauper.” The oldest of them held out a hand. “My mother named me after the STD Lothario Wells gave her when he knocked her up backstage after a concert in 1985. The best way for me to piss them both off was to join the clergy.” 

Cisco turned to Jesse, eyes now helplessly wide. 

“He’s teaching me to play guitar.” Jesse winked at her alternate universe older brother, “And he knows all the dirty lyrics to every song.”

“I’m happily married to God,” said Father Gonryn. “And if you read your bible God has a dirty sense of humor.” 

Cisco put his hands over Xiomara’s ears.  

“Um, what about those two?” Cisco nodded towards what looked like an elf prince straight from middle earth offering a joint to a what his eyes told him was a precisely average nondescript human male but his vibrational senses insisted was a mass of conflicting energies that defied the laws of physics. Looking at them made the inside of his skull itch. 

“Thorn and Zeta.” Jesse also winced whenever she looked at them for too long. “They’re still trying to decide whether they’re dopplegangers of each other.” 

“I still vote no,” said Father Lauper. “Harrison never drinks at the same well twice.” Jesse rolled her eyes at the joke. 

The more Cisco tried to study Thorn and Xeta the more he felt his skin slowly unravel from the inside. His eyes watered from the effort. 

Xiomara took his hand and gently squeezed. He blinked hard and suddenly his skin felt too tight, like it was trying to detach from outside his body and crawl in through his mouth, displacing his organs. He breathed hard, air heavy in his lungs, each molecule of oxygen falling into them like rocks weighing his body down and down and “What the fuck?” 

“Ninety seven seconds. That’s impressive.” Father Lauper slapped him again, just to make sure Cisco’s attention was exclusively on him. “They don’t play well with others. You learn to ignore them if they’re not in the mood to be seen.”

Cisco wiped an arm across his eyes. “What are they?”  

“Thorn’s dad says he stroked his wand so long he magiced him into existence,” said Xiomara. Cisco struggled to keep a straight face. “And Zeta says his mom is a time ship named Gideon.”

“They mostly show up to judge us,” said Virginia. 

“At least Thorn shares his pot,” Jesse added. She tossed Cisco a little leather bag and a fanciful clay pipe straight out of middle Earth. “Apology gift.” 

Cisco could use some now. He rubbed his free hand over his eyes. “Jesse, this is all very Orphan Black of you, but I’m not a member of the Clone Club. What am I doing here?”

“My Papi and Papa are missing,” said Xiomara. 

“The good news is we think Jesse’s dad knows where they are,” said Curtis. 

Cisco’s face fell. 

Jesse leaned against Cisco’s shoulder. “The bad news is you’re the only person he reliably recognizes anymore other than me.”

 

* * *

Virginia Wells pulled a post-it note off Harry’s wall and passed it to Curtis. “I think Jesse’s dad has a crush on your mom.” 

Curtis smiled down at the checklist. 

  * Apologise to D.A. Cecile Horton
  * Befriend D.A. Cecile Horton
  * Socialize with D.A. Cecile Horton
  * (optional: include Detective West) 



 

The yellow post-it was just below a photo of a highly pregnant Cecile. To the right of the checklist, another post-it included a reminder that D. A. Cecile Horton was pregnant by Detective Joe West. To the left was a short list of inventions including mental activity dampener, cerebral inhibitor, and intelligence booster. Under the list of inventions was the word TELEPATH circled in red. 

There were similar neat collections of photos and post-it notes for Barry Allen, Iris West-Allen, Dr. Caitlin Snow, Detective Joe West, Christina McGee (1) and (2), and Big Belly Burger Cashier Bobbi, though that was just a close-up of the menu with individual items circled in red grease pencil. 

“No Tracy Brand,” said Virginia. 

Curtis wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “Welcome to the One of a Kind Wells Club.” 

Pictures of Jesse, printouts of major events from her life, and countless post-it notes took up half the wall. The photos and post-it’s near the top were neat, organized, and easy to follow, with some anecdotes stretching over four or five post-it’s. Towards the bottom the haphazardly slapped on notes devolved into short phrases with an occasional smiley face, frowny face or question mark. 

Between Jesse and the rest of humanity were pictures of Cisco - mostly candid shots of him working in his lab, hair tucked behind his ears, bent over specific inventions. The center note read:

_ Cisco Ramon is _

_ Vibe, who can do anything _

_ The best man I know _

 

Jesse rested her chin on Cisco’s shoulder. “He didn’t write a haiku about me.” Cisco blushed. 

One note towards the bottom was simply an asymmetrical heart with a wobbly question mark drawn in the middle. 

“There’s a pattern.” Father Lauper leaned against the opposite wall, gently strumming a mandolin Thorn seemingly summoned from thin air. 

Cisco sighed. “I know. His progression is actually more predictable than traditional dementia.”

“Nah.” Father Lauper stopped strumming. “Come here. All of you.” 

Virginia and Curtis bent over another post-it note, muttering to one another about whether this coffee order meant anything.  

Father Lauper stopped strumming his mandolin. “If you don’t join me by this wall I’ll tell you about the third time I walked in my father fucking a pie.” 

The Council of Wells hurriedly shuffled over. 

“Now what do you see?” asked Father Lauper.

“Proof STAR Labs needs to invest more into dementia prevention and treatment?” asked Jesse.

Father Lauper snorted. “Stop looking at the post-it’s.” He pet the top of Xiomara’s hair. “Ask yourself how a man like Harrison Wells would keep a secret from himself while leaving the most important people in his life all the clues they need.” 

Cisco and Jesse stared at one another and shrugged, equally mystified. 

“As you move orthogonally there’s an uptick in the repetition of…” Virginia began. 

“Nope,” said Father Lauper. “What aren’t you seeing?” 

Xiomara tugged on his hand. He bent over so she could whisper in his ear. His face split into a familiar, deeply dimpled grin. “I knew you’d get it first,” he whispered. 

“Share with the rest of the class,” said Jesse. 

“It’s a map.” Xiomara pulled a Grumpy Cat laser pointer out of her pocket. They watched as she silently traced the empty spaces between photos and post-its. When looked at from the seat behind Harry’s favorite work bench, there was a solid line between all of Harry’s friends and the two people he cared for most. 

“That’s the backbone of the R,” said Xiomara. Her pink laser pointer traced the upper curve as it wrapped around photos of Cisco dressed in his Vibe gear. Between the backbone and the leg of the R were photos of Cisco bent over specific projects in his workshop. The lower right corner of the letter’s leg ended in a photo of Cisco in his vibe gear and Harry holding a pulse rifle, both defiantly facing to the right. A photo of a leather clad Jesse Quick facing left seemed to reach through the empty space, urging them to come to her. In between was the post-it note with a question mark inside a heart. 

“The letter tells you who he expects to solve it. R for Ramon.” Xiomara smiled up at Cisco. “Look for the arrow. It’ll point to information you’ll get but most people won’t.” 

“Your dads do this often?” asked Curtis.

“I get kidnapped sometimes.” Xiomara shrugged. “We’ve got a system.” 

“It all looked so random,” Jesse said softly. 

“He knew casual observers would be obsessed with the content of the notes,” said Curtis. 

Virginia sauntered back to the wall. She touched a finger to the post-it note with a heart, then pulled it off and gently turned it around in her hands. After three circuits she put the crudely drawn asymmetrical heart back on the wall where she found it. Pointing down, it looked more like an arrowhead aimed squarely at a nearby work bench. She leaned over the cluttered bench from a height equal to her father’s, stared straight down, and laughed.  

“You shorties probably can’t see this,” she said, pointing at a peripheral mess of empty Big Belly Burger bags protecting a mix of nearly arranged cold fries and discarded ketchup packets, “But X marks the spot.” 

 

* * *

“I’m sorry, but no Bobbi works here.” The Big Belly Burger night shift manager looked like she did not have time for this bullshit. 

“Are you sure?” asked Cisco. “Our friend is, er...”

“He had a concussion that led to a traumatic brain injury,” said Curtis, “His memories are a little muddled, but the one thing he knows for sure is that he loves Big Belly Burger and that Bobbi knows his order.”

“Our friend?” Jesse said softly, “Is my dad. I just want to bring him something he loves. Something familiar that might help his recovery.” She held out a photo of Harry in his characteristic goth scarecrow baggy black clothes, baseball cap, and worn rucksack from the War of the Americas. 

The night manager squinted at the unfamiliar face. “Is that Randolph Morgan?” 

“Yes!” Cisco jumped in before Jesse could protest. 

“Yeah, I know him,” the manager nodded slowly, “We all do. In here more nights than not. We’re not sure if he’s homeless or divorced.” She looked up expectantly. They kept their faces blank. The night manager sighed. “Those ratty sweaters could go either way. He always orders the B4 combo meal.” 

They waited expectantly. The night manager rolled her eyes and pointed at the glowing menu board. “One double-double, one mixta fries - it’s two types in one bag, three onion rings, four spicy chicken nuggets. It’s real popular with stoners and soccer moms.” She smiled down at Xiomara. “Sometimes he’ll add on a triple-triple and a couple of shakes.”

Xiomara sniffed. “My Papa said he always ordered three onion rings so we could each have one to put on our burger.” 

The night manager looked at Cisco in a panic. “That’s right,” Cisco soothed. He put an arm around Xiomara’s shoulder and pulled her close.  “That’s why it’s on the combo meal. So families can share.” They all watched while she digested this. She nodded bravely. The night manager silently pushed a stack of coupons in Cisco’s direction. Xiomara kept her face appropriately sad,but slipped a hand behind her back and wiggled her fingers in a gimmie-gimmie motion until Cisco slipped her the coupons. 

“Has he varied his order in the last few weeks?” asked Virginia.

The night manager shrugged. “We’re a fast food restaurant. Not the diet police.”

“Can you think of any unusual orders?” asked Father Lauper. “Something that would’ve really stood out - enough for folks to make a story out of it.” 

The night manager eyed them all suspiciously. “Look, whatever you’re up to, I’m not interested. He’s a regular. Always puts his change in the charity bucket. Polite to the staff. I don’t want any trouble.”

Father Lauper reached out to squeeze the night manager’s shoulder. “Thank you for your patience, sister. We’ve already taken up so much of your time. We’ll place an order, now. I don’t want you to go under your quota for the night.” 

He steered the rest of the Wells to the register. This time of night the restaurant had more employees than customers. They’d all heard the exchange with the night manager. A clump of them exchanged heated whispers before one took the counter. 

Father Lauper glanced at her name tag. “Hello, Rhonda.” 

“Hello, Father. What can I get you?” 

“We’ll take four B-4’s, two triple-triples, six chocolate shakes,” he put a $20 bill on the counter along with the photo where Harry Wells circled individual menu items.  “And surprise us. Whatever else you think we need.” 

The rest of the bill came to $85. Cisco put $100 on the counter and loudly announced they needed to find a table big enough to fit them all. There was no change. 

Xiomara asked if she could pump the ketchup, mayonnaise, and BBB sauce into the little paper cups while their food cooked. 

Rhonda smiled while Cisco supervised Xiomara reaching up and rocking on her heels to gleefully pump condiments. When their order arrived it included a Big Belly Burger kid’s meal. 

“Papi,” Xiomara whispered. 

Cisco’s heart broke a little as he gently laid a hand on top of hers. “I’m not him.” 

She pulled her hand away. Underneath it lay her toy surprise. She winked. 

Cisco pulled it across the table. Instead of the Heroes of Wakanda action figures promised on the cardboard box, they’d been given an overly chunky plastic heart locket left over from Big Belly Burger’s Valentine’s day meal special three months ago. Cisco popped it open. One side of the locket had a piece of paper with the number 42 written in Cisco’s own handwriting while the other had a star inside a rectangular box that if you squinted right looked like it was made from two mirrored capital L’s. 

He grabbed the Big Belly Burger menu photo they’ll pulled off Harry’s memory board. He’d written a large red 2 after the B4. He thought it was a reminder for Harry to pick up food for them both. Next to the 2 was a star. On its surface, a fading man’s reminder that this was his favorite order. 

Cisco stared at the locket for a moment, consciously forcing himself not to look up at the Big Belly Burger night staff for fear of making eye contact with Rhonda. Instead, he reached out and lay a hand on Xiomara’s cheek. He grabbed an onion ring off Victoria’s platter and put it on Xiomara’s burger before whispering, “Eat up. I know where to find your dads.” 

 

* * *

 

Cisco propped his mangled dirt bike against the wall. This STAR Labs was laid out just like his own - if he worked in the post-apocalyptic level of a video game. An EMP had taken out all the electronics for a half mile radius. After that, whoever was still alive in this STAR Labs had gone to desperate measures trying to contain something - so desperate that the entire building was now effectively one giant metahuman power dampener. 

“I forgot how much bruises suck,” said Jesse. 

“I should make all you speedsters spend one day a month in power dampener cuffs just so you’ll remember how the rest of us live.” Cisco finished hammering rebar into his makeshift pulley. “Alright. Everybody’s weight on this side.” 

They’d taken down this world’s Rogues but so far had no luck finding Xiomara’s dads. “If crazed metas were threatening my life, this is where I’d hide,” he reassured them. He braced himself as the three of them heaved. The fallen concrete slab fell to one side, partially revealing the workshop door. 

Jesse artfully leapt over the wreckage. She braced her hands on the door’s upper mantle, about to slide into the room, and instead broke out in giggles. 

“You don’t need to blow up an entire STAR Labs to get some alone time,” said Jesse Wells. “If the two of you need a vacation I’m always happy to babysit Xiomara.” 

Cisco climbed up the jagged concrete to peer inside. “Nope.” He put his hands over Xiomara’s eyes and steered her back into the hallway. 

Francis Wells cheeks flushed a deep scarlet as he hastily wiped his mouth against his sleeve. Behind him, Harris cursed quietly while shoving his shirt back into his suit pants. “Wait with your new uncle, mija!” Francis shouted. “We’ll be right there!”  

Harris glared Jesse down while zipping up his pants. “Why the hell did you bring her here?” He waved at the burnt out husk of what had once been a high tech workshop. Rain gently pattered through a gaping hole in the roof, pooling inside the remains of a limb sized 3D bioprinter. 

“Thank you for the rescue, Cisco,” he shouted from the hallway. “We’re so impressed you took down those idiots without any powers or tech beyond the stone age.” Xiomara giggled as Cisco rolled his eyes. 

“Once the situation was contained, Xiomara threatened to rip out my eyeballs and stuff them up my nostrils if I didn’t bring her for the rescue.” Jesse casually studied her fingernails. 

“That’s my girl,” Harris stage whispered. 

“Is it safe in there?” shouted Cisco. “Because it’s safe out here. Just so you know, we didn’t bring her over until after we put down Snart and his gang.” 

“Wait,” said Francis. “When you say ‘put down’...”

Jesse reached down to help Xiomara climb over the chunk of concrete. As soon as her feet hit the ground she ran across the room and wrapped her arms around both her dads. 

“They put Tio Lenny and Tio Micky into a special meta prison then Tio Cisco breached Sir Shark to a world full of really mean mermaids who said they’d put him in his place but I don’t know if they were talking about Sir Shark or Tio Cisco.” 

She was so excited her words ran together breathlessly. “They asked Tio Cisco if they could eat his liver but he said not this trip so we might need to make him a new liver for a transplant and I’m so happy to see you but seriously a man can’t live without a liver it’s got  _ live  _ in the name!” 

Harris knelt down and took her face in his hands. “Breathe,” he whispered. “We’re fine.” 

“You’ve been here for  _ days _ !” she protested. 

“You rescued us before we ran out of food. I’m so proud.” Harris leaned his forehead against hers and stared into her eyes until they were slowly breathing in time. 

“Did she just call Leonard Snart and Mick Rory her uncles?” Cisco sat on top of the concrete wreckage. He couldn’t bring himself to enter the room. Watching Harris with Xiomara hurt too much. 

“Custody dispute.” Francis put a possessive hand on Xiomara’s head while shifting his weight to lean slightly against Harris. “Lisa’s out of prison again. She pulls this dramatic bullshit whenever I remind her that she can’t have unsupervised visitation. She always uses it to try and kidnap Xiomara.” 

Cisco’s eyes went wide. “Dude, you knocked up Lisa Snart,” he did some quick math, “While you were in high school?” 

Francis raised an eyebrow. “What? Your condoms didn’t break until college?” 

“Cisco never sealed the deal with his world’s Lisa,” said Jesse. 

Francis silently mouthed, ‘Smart choice’ while still gently stroking Xiomara’s hair. 

“This time, when things got ugly we sent Xiomara to stay with her big sister.” Harris looked up at Jesse with a mix of paternal pride and a hint of longing. 

“Bastards followed us across half a dozen worlds,” said Francis. 

Harris wrapped a hand around his husband’s leg and let the arm on his daughter’s face drop to her waist. “The Snarts wanted Xiomara. The Queens wanted our research. And Sir Shark just wanted to kill people. It was a nightmare teamup.” 

“How’d you end up here?” Cisco gestured around the broken husk of an abandoned STAR Labs. “This isn’t your home world.” 

Harris blushed. “I, ah, asked H.R.’s friend Rhonda for a favor.”

 

* * *

 

Cisco guiltily watched Rhonda practice watercolors with Harry. Between Breacher’s job offer and his breakup and yet another world ending crisis he hadn’t thought to ask who was supervising Harry when he or Caitlin weren’t around. 

Harry’s lab notebook was full of precise hand drawn schematics interspersed with the occasional detailed drawing of an individual leaf or an unfamiliar night sky. After Harry’s mind started slipping Cisco found a smaller notebook tucked under Harry’s cot. Pencil sketches of Jesse at different ages, an unfamiliar woman he assumed was Jesse’s mom, the feral black cat no one on Team Flash knew slept in Harry’s room, and Cisco. So many of Cisco. Mostly bent over his workbench, hair tucked behind one ear, occasionally looking back over his shoulder wearing a distinctly welcoming expression. They made him blush. 

One could charitably call Harry’s current watercolors expressionist; all blurry emotion with no hard lines or precise details. He should’ve known Harry wasn’t patient enough to stay focused on daily painting without anyone else around to gently keep him on task. 

“I can’t meet him.” Virginia turned away from the monitor.  “I’m so sorry. This. I knew it was bad. I,” she sniffed. “Please. I need to go home and hug my parents.” 

Cisco gave her a tight hug. She whispered, “Thank you. I couldn’t do it,” before letting him go. 

“We’re still on for Tuesday night at Jesse’s place, right?” Curtis hugged her. 

“It’d be a sin to miss it,” Father Lauper winked. 

Virginia shakily nodded. Cisco gave her another quick hug before opening a breach. 

“We should head home, too,” said Francis Wells. “He gets agitated when he sees us. I think it’s too,” he paused, staring into Cisco’s eyes. “Confusing.” 

“Wait. Did everyone here at STAR Labs know about this Council of Wells Juniors but me?” Cisco glared at Jesse. 

“No,” she said. “Just dad. I thought about it, but we, er, only invited other Wells.” 

Cisco’s gaze slipped over to Rhonda on the monitor. Xiomara squeezed his hand. “You can come visit us anytime you want, Tio Cisco.” 

He forced his attention back to Xiomara. “If these dumbasses get themselves into trouble and Jesse’s not available to bail them out, you come get me.” He handed her a two way breach medallion. 

She held it up to Jesse, then stretched out her free hand. Jesse rolled her eyes and handed over a $10 bill. 

“I don’t know where you think you’re going to spend that,” said Harris. “It might as well be monopoly money on our world.”

“Duh. Tuesday nights. I want one of those asparagus and lime cakes all for myself.” 

“Your world’s food is disgusting.” Francis cheerfully kissed Jesse’s forehead. “We’ll see you Tuesday.” 

Harris pulled her into a tight hug. “Wouldn’t miss it.” He kissed her forehead, lingering sadly for a second. 

Cisco raised a fist to open a breach, but Xiomara pushed it back down. “I wanna do it.” She held the breach medallion forward, striking a pose. A liquid silver and blue portal erupted in front of her. “You’re the best, Tio Cisco!” 

Francis squeezed Cisco’s shoulder. “This is on you, man. I take no responsibility for her showing up in your workshop at odd hours. Just try to get her home in time for dinner.” He jumped through the portal.

Harris reluctantly let go of Jesse and grabbed Xiomara’s hand. They hopped through the breach together. 

“His daughter died in the same car accident that killed his wife,” said Jesse. “If he didn’t have Xiomara I don’t think he’d be able to look at me.” 

Cisco squeezed her hand. “They seem happy.”

She squeezed back. “They are.” She looked up through her lashes and stared hard at Cisco. He swallowed nervously as he stepped away. He couldn’t think about Harry like that. Not anymore. 

“Curtis?” Cisco raised his fist to offer another breach door. 

“Not yet.” Curtis put a hand on Father Lauper’s shoulder. The priest pulled his brother into a quick hug, then left his arm draped around his shoulders as they all headed down the hall. 

Cisco knocked twice on the door before opening it. “Knock knock.” He stuck in his head. 

Rhonda looked up at Cisco, startled and guilty. A look of relief crossed her face when Father Lauper hip bumped Cisco back into the hallway before Harry could see him. “Rhonda has to go to work now,” he said, his voice light and conversational. “Mind if I play some music while you paint?” He held up the mandolin. 

Harry put down his paintbrush and smiled. “Yes. Good idea. Yes.” He nodded, his face free from the lines of frustration and worry that seemed etched into his skin whenever he looked at Cisco. “Music and art. Belong together. Yes.” 

Father Lauper pulled some clothespins out of his pocket. He helped Rhonda hang the painting she’d been working on. She kissed Harry’s temple, making him blush. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Harry studied Father Lauper’s lean, dimpled face. “Have we met?” 

“Yes. You confessed,” the priest tapped his collar. “That you secretly love 80’s icon Cyndi Lauper.” He strummed the first few chords of  _ Money Changes Everything.  _

Harry laughed. “My wife said we should’ve danced to that song at our wedding.” It was the longest sentence Cisco had heard him speak in days. 

Father Lauper shot an I’ve-got-this wink over his shoulder that made Cisco wonder how many times he and Harry had that exact same exchange. 

Rhonda waved once more at Harry. He was too engrossed in swirling his brush in the paints to notice. She silently pulled the door closed behind her. 

Safely in the hallway, she glanced between Jesse, Curtis, and Cisco, defiant. “I know he’s not H.R.,” she said. “But I also know that if H.R. was still alive he’d do everything in his power to help his brother.” 

Cisco pulled an emergency breach medallion out of his pocket. “Thanks for loaning this to Harris and his family.” He handed it back to Rhonda. “The emergency back door world H.R. set it to is kinda a dystopian nightmare right now, so I reset it to some place nicer.”

Rhonda’s thumb moved over the silver and purple medallion. “I didn’t think you’d give it back.”

“It wasn’t mine to take,” said Cisco. He didn’t know why H.R. gave his ex a backdoor to escape this world. Maybe some day she’d tell him. 

“Thank you,” said Cisco. “For everything. If you’re willing to keep coming back, I’ll get you a key.” 

“Father Lauper already made me one.” Rhonda held up a white plastic Costco Members card and tapped the RFID chip. 

“Wait. He what?” Cisco reached for the card. Rhonda danced back a couple steps. 

Curtis coughed. “Being a priest doesn’t exactly pay. On his world he keeps his parish alive by working as a white hat hacker.”

“I’ve learned a lot from him about corporate espionage,” Jesse added. 

“Hey!” 

Curtis froze at the sound of a familiar voice echoing down the concrete hallway. 

“Good to see you, Rhonda!” Cecile slowly maneuvered down the hallway, one hand on the wall for balance. 

“Seriously?” Cisco looked at Jesse, betrayed. Jesse ignored him. 

“Normally when you’re down here Harry’s thoughts are pretty calm. Just a lot of colors and patterns and the occasional craving for a Big Belly Burger.” Rhonda laughed at Cecile’s joke. “But whatever’s going on right now is giving me a killer headache. You guys are a mess!” 

“You’re pregnant,” Curtis whispered. He stared hard at her belly. Seeing it in a photo was nothing like seeing it in person. 

“Almost ready to pop!” Cecile laughed. She ran an affectionate hand over her belly. It slowed as her head rose, molasses slow, until she made eye contact with Curtis. “You’re my...his...oh.” 

“Hi.” Curtis swallowed hard.

Cecile turned to Jesse, then Cisco, a range of emotions rapidly playing across her face. She blinked fast, took a deep breath, then looked back at Curtis, breathing hard. “Your sister Joanie is a few years younger than you,” she said softly. “The next time she’s home from college maybe you could meet.” 

“I’d like that,” Curtis whispered. 

Cecile held out a hand. Curtis trembled as he stretched to take it. “You came all this way to help. He likes happy memories. Family memories. Normally I visit him with Jesse, but you should join me today.” 

“I know he’s not really my dad, but I don’t know if I can see him like that,” Curtis whispered. His hand was leaf soft against hers, ready to blow away on the softest breeze of doubt. 

She squeezed it tight. “I believe in you.” 

Cisco watched Jesse and Cecile take turns giving Rhonda the sort of perfunctory kiss on the cheek you gave someone you saw daily. How could he be so far out of the loop? 

As Rhonda hurried off to work, Cecile opened the door. “Hey big guy! Remember me?” 

Harry’s face lit up. “D.A. Cecile Horton.” 

She practically dragged Curtis into the room with her. “Let’s see what you’re painting today!” 

He leaned back to give her full view of blurry bronze airships circling over a sepia suggestion of skyscrapers connected by a hint of light rail. “Home.” 

Cecile lay a hand on his shoulder, resting her weight against him. Harry reached back and gently lay his own hand atop hers. Cecile closed her eyes, hands tightening against both Curtis and Harry as she channeled all the power her pregnancy provided. 

Memories flashed behind her eyes. Birthday parties and science fairs and the fight over rhetoric club versus theater classes. The car wreck and the prosthetics and the long fights over making all their bio-organic research open source that only ended after a call from the nobel committee. The board game nights and the father-son moments of registering their legs every time they entered an airport and all the times he’d pretended to be embarrassed by his parents PDA while secretly proud of them for still being so in love after so many years. 

Harry’s eyes were tightly closed. He turned his cheek so he could nuzzle it against the back of Cecile’s palm before planting a chaste kiss on her knuckles. She swallowed hard, eyes wet and heavy, then reluctantly pulled away from them both. The moment she broke contact Harry slumped in his chair, strings holding him to a semblance of normal life suddenly cut and cauterized. 

Cisco wanted to wash his hands. It was too intimate. He couldn’t see everything that passed between them, but whatever that was he didn’t feel right witnessing it. 

Father Lauper lay hands on both Curtis and Cecile’s shoulders and steered them out the door. Cecile pulled Curtis into an awkward embrace. “Go home. Hug your parents.” She squeezed both his hands. “And invite your brothers and sisters home to meet them. They could use some sibling love, and I bet your parents would melt all over a room full of brilliant Wellses.” 

“Yes, ma’am,” Curtis whispered. 

Cisco silently opened a breach. Curtis couldn’t make eye contact with him or Jesse before striding through. 

Cecile lay a hand on both Jesse and Cisco’s cheeks. “Just tell him he did good work today.” A tear slipped down her cheek. “And that you love him.” 

Father Lauper strummed his mandolin as she walked away. No one looked up. He gently put the forgotten paint brushes into a glass of water while waiting for Jesse and Cisco to pull themselves together. 

Jesse knelt next to her father. She rested her head on his knee and reached for his unresponsive hand. “You did it, Dad. Xiomara is back home with her fathers. You were so clever. You saved everybody.” 

Harry’s hand fluttered to her cheek. She leaned into it as he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “Jesse Quick,” he said softly. “You’re my joy.” 

“We got the message,” said Cisco. “Splitting it into two parts was smart.”

“And anyone who found your wall would have to know you well enough to put together the three things you love most,” said Jesse. “Big Belly Burger, and me, and, y’know…” she squeezed her father’s hand, hoping he’d finish the sentence for her. His thumb idly brushed a tear off her cheek. 

Harry blinked a few times then frowned up at Cisco. He looked down at Jesse, frown deepening. “What did I do?” 

“You were brilliant,” Jesse sniffed. 

“You’re both crying.” 

Cisco winced as the deep lines of anxiety and fear he’d come to associate with Harry etched themselves back into his features. Harry looked around the room, forehead deeply wrinkled in concentration as he tried to fathom what was wrong. 

“You did good,” said Cisco. He ran a hand through Harry’s floof of chestnut curls. A little of the worry on Harry’s face faded as he leaned into Cisco’s touch. “We couldn’t have done it without you.” 

Father Lauper strummed a few bars of  _ True Colors _ . “He won’t remember any of the details later,” he said gently, “Just the emotions. You’re best off leaving on a high note.” 

“No,” Harry protested. His face contorted in concentration. “I understand…” a light flickered behind his eyes, but by the time he straightened in his chair the look of clarity had faded back into confusion. 

Cisco swallowed hard and led Jesse out. Harry watched them go, hurt and confused. The sounds of Jesse and Cisco gently comforting one another faded with every step as they hurried away. “Why?” Harry asked Father Lauper. 

Two corners of the room shimmered. Father Lauper didn’t look directly at either Thorn or Zeta, preferring instead to keep eye contact with Harry while he strummed the mandolin. “Were they gone long enough for you to get what you need?”

“No,” said Zeta. “This install of my mother is both incomplete and corrupted.” He slid behind Harry and rested his palms against Harry’s temples, fingers curling forward over his eyes. The tension in Harry’s face disappeared. Beside Zeta, Thorn whispered a rhythmic chant. 

“That sounds like Latin,” said Father Lauper. 

“What? Did you expect him to cast a spell in  [ Quenya ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quenya) ?” Zeta snorted. 

Energy crackled between Thorn’s hands as he worked.  “How long do you plan to maintain this self imposed penance?” he asked the priest. 

Father Lauper snorted. “You’re all so angry at your fathers. I made peace with Lothario when I joined the priesthood. I’m here because I’m the only Wells who can bear to look at him.” 

Zeta stared at Father Lauper until a blood vessel burst in the priest’s eye. Lauper didn’t twitch. 

“Sorry.” Zeta sighed heavily and bent down to lay dry lips on Harry’s forehead. “We can’t fix you right now, Harry. You still have a role to play. But we can smooth over the rough edges and provide you with clarity.” 

Thorn lay the post-it note with the heart and question mark in Harry’s palm. He curled Harry’s fingers around it and whispered, “Remember.” 

The air thickened until the heavy weight of oxygen in his lungs forced Harry down until he collapsed onto his art supplies. Sleep wrapped around him, warm and comfortable, like insulating foam protecting a live electrical wire, danger cloaked in softness.

His body should’ve been a mass of knots after spending hours hunched over in that position, but Harry woke from the deepest, most relaxing sleep he’d experienced on Earth One, intelligence unrestored, but unexpectedly both free of pain and full of single minded clarity. 

He knew exactly what was coming. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> I love the idea that Harrison Wells kids across the multiverse are all only children who would instantly and eagerly bond as siblings - and that they'd immediately pitch in to help one another whether the crisis was physical (rescuing Xiomara's parents) or emotional (supporting Jesse during Harry's decline.) I also couldn't resist having some of them take advantage of the situation (Thorn and Zeta) because hey, these ARE Harry's kids. 
> 
> I pulled Rhonda-who-likes-new-positions into this because I wanted to remind Cisco that H.R. had friends and connections outside STAR Labs, so it shouldn't be shocking that Harry does, too.


End file.
